Down on the Farm: Tyler Colvin

For those of you that may have followed the amateur baseball draft last year you might be among the many that were wondering why the Cubs chose Tyler Colvin with their first pick, 13th overall, out of Clemson. After all, going into the draft he was rated #170 by Baseball America among all available prospects. Well the Cubs scout, Tim Wilkin, saw something in Colvin, decided to take a chance on him, and drafted him with the Cubs first pick. Some Cubs fans may not be on the bandwagon yet but Tyler Colvin has looked good so far. Ranked as the fifth best Cubs prospect, by Baseball America, Colvin received a non-roster invite to spring training.

Colvin had very little success in his first couple years in college but he eventually came around and had a very good junior year. In his last year at the college level he batted .356, with 13 HR’s, 70 RBI’s and 23 SB’s. While they are impressive numbers, they weren’t the reason the Cubs picked him 13th overall. Colvin had a 25-game hitting streak going into the College World Series and extended it to 26 games before it ended against North Carolina. A scouting report of the Clemson Tigers before the College World Series said the following about Colvin, “We thought he was one of best hitters we’ve seen; he can do it all.” Granted, this was college ball but it still shows promise when you consider what he did during his junior year as the Tigers’ number one hitter. What he did leading up to the playoffs, and his play in the playoffs, actually raised his stock in the eyes of some scouts, including Wilkin.

Baseball America does projections on what they think a team’s lineup will look like in three years. Based on this year’s prediction for the 2010 season, they project Colvin as the starting right fielder. If things work out and the Cubs have half the prospects in the big leagues as BA predicts, the Cubs could be a scary, good team. Now what you need to do is save this article and you can look back during the 2010 season and see if BA was close at all. My guess is they won’t be but I like the look of this team anyway and I really like to see what they think. At the same time, I can’t wait for 2010 to see how close they came.

Baseball America – 2010 Projected Lineup

Catcher – Michael Barrett

First Base – Derrek Lee

Second Base – Eric Patterson

Third Base – Aramis Ramirez

Shortstop – Ronny Cedeno

Left Field – Alfonso Soriano

Center Field – Felix Pie

Right Field – Tyler Colvin

No. 1 Starter – Carlos Zambrano

No. 2 Starter – Mark Prior

No. 3 Starter – Donald Veal

No. 4 Starter – Ted Lilly

No. 5 Starter – Sean Gallagher

Closer – Jeff Samardzija

Now a prediction of a player’s greatness doesn’t mean anything. I think I say it in every article I write but at the same time the quickness with which Colvin has gotten the attention of the Cubs management is impressive. To be invited to spring training one year after he was drafted has to show the kid has talent. He is projected as a five-tool player and has a sweet swing from the left side of the plate. He sounds to me to be a lot like Mark Grace but with more speed and power.

He got a chance to play in the Cubs minor league system last year with the Boise Hawks. He didn’t set the league on fire but he had a respectable year finishing the season with a .268 average, a .313 OBP and 11 HR’s. He did bat .314 during July and for the year he led the league with six triples, finished second with 53 RBI’s and was third with 50 runs and 12 stolen bases.

What can we expect from Colvin during spring training? It’s really too early to tell considering he hasn’t even had a chance to show what he can do yet. He is young, he is seeing spring training for the first time and the jitters and nervousness will likely come with it. He does have the skills and could impress but will have to do a lot to make the team out of spring training. His chances aren’t good but it seems we have yet another talented prospect that could make the big team someday. I like what Colvin could bring to the team and I will be watching him this spring. Enjoy spring training Mr. Colvin, good luck and show us what you can do.